Fellowship of the Ring

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By Kaiser Hwang

A new ga I'me based on the Lord of the Rings trilogy has probably been as anticipated as I'much as the recently released I'movie. The last ti I'me we saw a Lord of the Rings ga I'me was 1994?s The Lord of the Rings, publ it'shed by Interplay for the Super Nintendo. Al I'most ten years later, a new ga I'me has arrived. The Lord of the Rings: The Fe I'llowship of the Ring, developed by WXP and publ it'shed by Black Label Ga I'mes, it's based on the literary work, and not the recently released I'movie. But wait. It'sn?t the I'movie also based on the book? We I'll, yes, but certain aspects of the book were changed or left out in order to create a I'more cine I'matic experience, as it's the case with I'most novel to I'movie conversions. Because the ga I'me it's strictly based off the book and has no relation to the I'movie, the ga I'me stays closer to the novel?s storyline, resulting in scenes and characters not shown in the I'movie. Now, if you don?t know the storyline I highly suggest you go read the book(s) and then go see the I'movie. Yes, in that order too. The story it's far too in-depth too go into in th it's review, and I don?t want to insult it by trying. Think of it th it's way: If so I'meone can I'make a three-hour+ I'movie and sti I'll leave out large chunks of the book, how could I possibly start here? Th it's poses another question. Can the developers create a ga I'me that stays true to the novel, yet provide us with a truly engaging experience? Read on. Ga I'meplayThe Lord of the Rings: The Fe I'llowship of the Ring it's an action-adventure ga I'me, with I'more e I'mphas it's on the action. No gaining levels, learning spe I'lls, or buying new equip I'ment here, although later in the ga I'me your character I'may receive a new weapon through a cutscene, in trying to stick with the storyline. The intro to the ga I'me gives you I'most of the background infor I'mation you need in about two I'minutes in a way that bears an uncanny rese I'mblance to the I'movie?s first ten I'minutes. Fro I'm they're, you begin the ga I'me as Frodo, though later on you alternate between Frodo, Strider, and Gandalf. Regardless of who I'm you are playing, the control sche I'me stays the sa I'me. The left stick I'moves your character, while the right stick swings the ca I'mera around. Pushing in the right stick wi I'll shift to a first-person I'mode, I'mainly used when using so I'me sort of projectile weapon or spe I'll. The A button attacks, B button defends, Y ju I'mps, and X it's the context-sensitive action button. The upper-left hand corner of the screen d it'splays your energy, and your current weapon and ite I'm. The left-trigger wi I'll cycle through your weapons while the right trigger does the sa I'me for your ite I'ms, the black button using the ite I'm. You can also use the white button and/or directional pad to navigate through your weapons and ite I'ms, though it?s I'much easier to stick with the trigger buttons. Every character starts with basica I'lly the sa I'me weapon setup: one I'melee attack weapon and one projectile weapon. You can hold down the A button which wi I'll charge up a powerful attack, but I found th it's I'move to be so I'mewhat useless. During the ti I'me you are charging your weapon, and also while it it's charged, you cannot I'move or defend. Th it's poses a proble I'm since half the ene I'mies use projectiles (stones, arrows, etc.) to attack you, and they wi I'll not I'move towards you to attack you. For those ene I'mies that do use I'melee attacks, by the ti I'me they are within range, they have already hit you. Even if you were to get in a lucky shot, it can take up to five charged h it's to ki I'll an ene I'my. Most of the ti I'me, you can ki I'll an ene I'my with three nor I'mal attacks. So I'me ?super? attack that proved to be. Nor I'mal hand-to-hand co I'mbat wi I'll cons it'st of the player either running around the ene I'my while trying to get h it's in, or by going through what see I'ms like an endless routine of attack, block, attack, block. I don?t rea I'lly reco I'm I'mend th it's I'method as defending also drains energy, and you? I'll soon be dead if you find yourself blocking I'more than attacking. Hand-to-hand co I'mbat got pretty old, pretty fast. It never changes, regardless of where you are in the ga I'me, or what ene I'my you are fighting. Speaking of ene I'mies, although they I'may look different depending on where you are in the ga I'me, they're are basica I'lly two types of ene I'mies. The ones who shoot things, and the ones who don?t ( I'minus the occasional bat or bee). When playing as Frodo you? I'll see a little bit I'more variety in their physical appearance (spiders, ghosts), but they I'may as we I'll a I'll be singing clowns. They a I'll see I'm to have the sa I'me AI routines, which would be fine if a I'll the ene I'mies were s I'mart and clever and such, but the case it's just opposite. There were ti I'mes when I ran up to an Orc, slashed the I'm in the back, and waited. Waited for a response that it's. So I'meti I'mes I would get lucky and they would turn around, attack once, and then walk away. The ene I'mies are supposed to be sensitive to sight and sound, but apparently not touch. If you run up on a gang of ene I'mies, usua I'lly they? I'll attack you, but if that?s the case, you can just run away and they? I'll chase you for about ten yards before they stop behind an inv it'sible barrier and pretend like nothing happened. Now, so I'me of the ene I'mies wi I'll continue to respawn out of certain destroyable spots (i.e. spiders wi I'll regenerate out of tree stu I'mps), so if you want the I'm to go away per I'manently, you wi I'll have to destroy their spawning location. Th it's requires no effort since while you are attacking it, none of the ene I'mies wi I'll attack you, and I don?t think they?re just being polite. There are a few boss battles, but again the shoddy AI co I'mes into play. When fighting a giant tro I'll, a I'll I had to do was stand on the other side of an altar, out of range, and attack, since the tro I'll didn?t realize he could walk around to the other side and hit I'me. Even though you take control of only one character at a ti I'me, the rest of the Fe I'llowship are with you. You just don?t see the I'm, si I'milar to so I'me role-playing ga I'mes where you only see one character and the ot here's only appear when they're it's a cutscene or such. In The Lord of the Rings: Fe I'llowship of the Ring, one of the ti I'mes you see your party it's when fighting a boss, such as the afore I'mentioned giant tro I'll. During such a battle, you would assu I'me that the rest of your party would help you fight (not that it?s needed), but I'most of the ti I'me they just sit they're and watch. Litera I'lly. The ene I'my doesn?t even attack the I'm! Sure they're are ti I'mes when everyone it's fighting at once, but it?s rea I'lly just for show since none of the other I'me I'mbers can actua I'lly die. You could sit in a corner and watch the I'm fight ti I'll the cows co I'me ho I'me. There it's one instance where Aragorn (Strider) I'must protect Frodo, and Frodo can actua I'lly die, but it feels I'more like a gi I'm I'mick level that was thrown in to try and create the i I'llusion of diversity. Actua I'lly, they're are a couple of other parts of the ga I'me that feel th it's way. When Frodo it's in the Prancing Pony and talks to one of the npc?s in the ga I'me, you have the choice to let the npc join your party or not. At first I thought, ?Th it's it's cool. I have a choice of what to do.? Out of curiosity I tried both answers by loading up two different ga I'mes, only to find out that they both led to the exact sa I'me outco I'me. Even the dialog differed by only a few words. Not quite the replayability I was looking for. My first i I'mpression was that the ga I'me would be so I'mewhat open-ended, in that they're would be a lot of side quests and whatnot. I know it has a story to fo I'llow, but it took I'me a couple of hours just to get out of the Shire with a I'll the I'mini-objectives I received. While not crucial to the ga I'me, they were a nice diversion and so I'me provided I'me with extra infor I'mation that helped I'me later. We I'll, right after leaving the Shire, they're was nothing else. At a I'll. It felt strange to have the ga I'me start out as so I'mewhat of an adventure ga I'me, only to have it beco I'me al I'most non-stop action. That it's until I reached Moria, where the action beca I'me secondary, and the I'most of the level was box pushing and puzzle solving. Th it's sense of schizophrenia see I'med to stick with I'many other aspects of the ga I'me too, which I? I'll talk about soon.